Circuit controller



June 12, 1923.l 1,458,284

H. C. FORD C IRCUIT CONTROLLER Filedune 13 191s 2 sheets-sheet `1 y A lToR/WEY June l2, 1923.

1,458,284 H. C. FORD CIRCUIT CONTROLLER Filed June 1s 191s `2 sheets-sheet 2 35 36 JNI/E/VTo/e HY ATTNY Patented June l2, 1923.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HANNIBAL C. FORD, 0F JAMAICA, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO FORD INSTRUMENT COMPANY, INC., 0F NEW YORK,

N. Y., A CORPORATION 0F NEW YORK.

' CIRCUIT CONTROLLER.

Application filed June 13, 1918. Serial No. 239,909.

To all whom t may concern.' 1

Be it known that I, HANNIBAL C. FORD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Jamaica, in the borough of Queens, State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Circuit Controllers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to circuit controllers or to multi-throw control switches.

One object of the invention is to provide a control switch which has a plurality of separable units consisting of rotary contacts of conducting material with Contact segments thereon which contacts are insulated from each other and supported by a simple construction permitting the parts to be readity assembled and disassembled.

'A further object of the invention is to provide a simple arrangement of brushes and contact segments which will permit short contact segments to be used and yet the brushes will connect the contact to a source of current for a relatively large angular movement of the switch.

Cther objects of the invention will be apparent from the detailed description hereinafter to follow when taken into conjunction with the accompanying drawings and will be particularly pointed out in the ap-v pended claims.

In the drawings Fig. 1 is a plan of one embodiment of the invention, portions of the casing being removed to more clearly show the parts.

Fig. 2 is a section through Fig. 1 on the line 2-2 and Figs. 3 to 8 respectively are diagrams showing the arrangement of Contact segments and brushes of one of the units of the switch. l

The control switch is enclosed in a casing 1 having a cover.'2, the casing 1 being provided with ears or lugs 3 for securing it in position. The casing is also provided with bosses 4 having outlet openings 5 therein for the electric cables (not shown) which carry the wires to be connected to the brushes of the switch. Mounted within the casing 1 at each side thereof are a pair of panels 6 of insulating material which are supported by lugs 7 integral with the casing and by standards 8 which engage the front edge of each of the panels. These panels carry terminal bars 9 upon which brushes engaging the rotary contacts are mounted. Each of these brushes is of the same construction and is of resilient material with V-shaped ends to engage the rotary segments. The ends of the brushes are bifurcated or split in order to increase their resilience. The brushes carry terminals 11 to which the wires (not shown) are adapted to be connected.

Medially disposed between the brushes are the rotary contacts which will now be described. These contacts are supported upon a square shaft 13, one end of which is round and is threaded at 14 for a short distance and then projects into a recess 15 in one of the end walls of the casing. rli`his recess is closed by a plug 16 to make the switch watertight at this point. The other end 16 of the square shaft is also round and is surrounded by a collar 17 which is pinned to the shaft by a pin 17 rlfhe shaft projects through the casing and is surrounded by a stuffing box 19 which is secured to a boss 20 by means of screws 21. Mounted upon the shaft is a crank 22 which is provided with a rounded body portion 23 upon which the indicia for designating the position of the switch are marked. In order to insure that the shaft when displaced, will be thrown to a determined position, a roller and detent wheel are utilized as is the usual practice.

its construction is shown more clearly in Fig. 2 where the roller 27 is carried by an arm 25 which is pivoted at 26 and is adapted to engage in notches 28 in a detent wheel 29 which is fastened to the collar 17. rThe roller 27 is pressed against the detent wheel by a spring 30.

Referring now to the rotary contacts, these contacts are preferably made from castings of conducting material suoli as brass, there being one rotary contact for each pole of the circuit controller. Each of the contacts is of the same construction, being formed with a square bore of greater size than the square shaft 13 and being separated from the shaft by four strips 32 of fiber or other insulating material, which are held in place by the contacts and extend the entire length of the square portion 0f the shaft 13. The rotaryA contacts are separated from each other by washers 33 which are also of fiber or other insulating material and which are provided with square holes surrounding the strips 32. The contacts are held against displacement by the collar 17 and a nut 33 upon the threaded portion 14 of the shaft.

Flach ot the rotary contacts carries a plurality of contact segments which are supported by ribs 34. ln the embodiment of the invention shown, three contact segments are utilized which are designated 35,36 and 37 (see Fig. 2), the contact segments being longitudinally disposed and out ot radial alignment, or in other words helically disposed, with respect to the Contact, as shown of the rotary most clearly in Fig. 1.

ln thel embodiment of the invention shown, seven brushes are utilized for each rotary contact and their arrangement will be clear from the diagrams shown in Figs. 3 to 8 inclusive. ln Fig. 3 thc seven brushes which are arranged in two rows are designated 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45 and 46. "l`he brush 42 and the brush 46 which may be termed an auxiliary brush are electrically connected together and in practice are adapted to be connected to a source of electrical energy.

Referring now to the six positions of the circuit controller, in the positions shown in Fig. 3'the contact segment 35 connects the brushes 42 and 43; in Fig; 4 the brush `44 is in engagement with the contact segment 36 so that the circuit passes from the brush 42 to the brush 44 in the position of the switch shown in Fig. 5, the contact segments 37 and 35 connect the brush 42 to the brush 45; in Fig. 6 the brush 46 which is in electrical connection 'with the brush 42, is in engagement with the contact segment 35 and the brush 41 is in engagement with the contact segment 36 which will close the circuit through the brushes 46 and 4l; in Fig. 7 the contact segments 37 and 35 close the circuit through the brushes 40 and 46. It will therefore be seen that for the live positions of the switch, either the brushes 42 or 46 which are electrically connected together and are adapted to be connected to a source of current, are' included in a circuit with the five other brushes by means contact segments shown. In Fig. 8 contact segment 35 is out of engagement with the brush 46 and the other two contact segments are out of engagement with the brushes and hence the circuit controller is in its open position.

It is to be seenthat the number of rotary contacts may be increased or decreased as desired, depending upon the number of. wires to be controlled.

I claim: 1. In a multi-throw control switch, a rotary contact of'conducting -material having a; plurality of contact segments, said segments being longitudinally disposed and out of radial alignment, a pair of brushes for each contact segment, one brush of one pair of said brushes being adapted to be connected to a source of current and an auxiliary brush adaptedto be connected to a Leases@- source of current engaging one of said contact segments when the other brush connected to the source of current is disengaged from the segments, both of said last two named brushes being out of engagement with the contact segments in one position of the switch.

2. ln a multi-throw control switch, a rotarycontact of conducting material having a plurality of contact segments, said segments being longitudinally disposed and out of radial alignment,- two sets of oppositely disposed brushes, one brush of each set being arranged to contact with the same contact segment and one brush of said sets oit brushes being adapted to be connected to a source of `current and an auxiliary brush, also adapted to be connected to a source of current,V arranged to contact with one of said contact segments when said last named brush is out 4ot engagement with its contact segment, and both of said last two named brushes being out ot engagement with the contact segments in4 one position of the switch.

3. ln a multi-throw control switch, a rotary contact carrying a plurality of Contact segments, said contact segments being longitudinally disposed and out of radial alignment, the peripheral surface of said contacts being substantially less than the full circumference, two sets of oppositely disposed brushes for engagement with said Contact segments and an auxiliary brush electrically connected to one brush of the sets of brushes, said auxiliary brush being disposed at an angle to the brush to which it is connected and arranged with respect thereto so that a single one of said Contact segments is capable of engaging either or both of the last two mentioned brushes.

4. In a switch, a rotary member of conducting material provided with a plurality of helically disposed contact segments, a pair of brushes for each segment, an auxiliary brush associated with a brush of one of the pairs, said auxiliary brush and the brush with which it is associated being adapted tol be connected to a source of current and arranged to be successively engaged by one of the segments during the rotation of the member whereby current maybe supplied to the other brushes in turn.

5. In a switch, a rotary member of conducting material provided with a plurality of helically disposed contact segments, a pair of oppositely disposed brushes cooperating with each segment, one of 'the brushes of one of the pairs being adapted to be connected to a vsource of currentl whereby current may be supplied through the coo rating segment successively to the other rush of 'the' same pair and the corresponding brushes of the other pairs, and an auxilia brush adapted to be connected to the source of current and cooperating with the same segment for supplying current to the other brushes of the other pairs.

6. In a switch, a rotar member of conducting material provide with a plurality of helically disposed contact segments, a plurality of brushes arranged in rows and cooperating with the segments in pairs, one of the brushes of one row being adapted to be connected to a source of current whereby current may be supplied through the cooperating segment successively to the brushes of the other row, and an auxiliary brush adapted to be connected to the source of current and cooperating with the same segment for supplying current successively to the other brushes of the row in which the current supplying brush is located.

HANNIBAL C. FORD. 

